The hardline religious nationalist, once the head of a prominent Jewish settler group and now expected to become Israel’s next prime minister, is open about his plans for millions living under occupation. Benjamin Netanyahu – still prime minister, for now – has also said he intends to annex large parts of the West Bank in the future. To become prime minister in waiting, he has made a deal with the head of the opposition, Yair Lapid, who Bennett has long derided for his ostensible support for a two-state solution. “The left is making far from easy compromises here, when it bestows upon me ... the role of prime minister,” Bennett said in a speech late on Sunday. In an interview with the Guardian in 2017, Bennett said there would not be a Palestinian state on his watch.

Source: The Guardian June 03, 2021 03:56 UTC